066 - Machop
Fighting
Machop is perhaps one of the most well-known Fighting-type Pokemon introduced in Generation I, and even today likely is one of the first Pokemon people visualize when they hear "Fighting-type". He's often seen as Abra's counterpart, the two of them being polar-opposite in Type, having similar evolution patterns, and appearing alongside one another in the majority of Regional Dexes. As I mentioned before, Fighting-type Pokemon weren't as straight up powerful as Psychic types, however they are a very solid party member and it's likely many folks used a member of the Machop-line during their initial Gen I playthrough, and likely during future playthroughs of later Generations as well.
Like Abra, Machop doesn't seem to be based off any particular animal, although he has a vague "dinosaur" appearance due to his short tail, and the crests on his head which resemble something you might find on various bipedal, herbivorous dinosaurs. As a child, the dinosaur I always saw him as was a Pachycephalosaurus, his crests reminding me of their hardened domes and his love of combat bringing to mind how Pachycephalosaurus were believed to engage in combat through butting their heads, although I don't think this was actually Game Freak's intention. Years later, we'd actually get an authentic Pachycephalosaurus Pokemon, which greatly excited me since that was always a creature I adored and thought seemed natural to turn into a Pokemon.
While Machop eventually becomes one of the most muscular Pokemon, and is implied to very strong even as a child (able to lift 100 adults---although presumably not simultaneously), there's a bit of a weak looking element in his design due to his stomach, which looks a bit flabby with the ribs showing and all. I always thought Machop's flabby chest looked a bit odd, and sort of detracts from the design a bit by adding a somewhat distracting element that messes with the streamlined look most Generation I Pokemon are well known for, but it isn't a deal-breaker. He's still a Pokemon I enjoy, and one of the best representatives of my favorite Type.
Fighting-type Pokemon usually specialize in a certain form of martial arts, but Machop is a bit different since it's implied he's actually on a mission to master all forms of martial arts, although judging by his evolutions it appears he eventually settles on professional wrestling. It would've been cool if perhaps the idea of Machop being an all-around martial artist was expressed by him having branch-evolutions into different Pokemon focused on various forms of martial arts, but of course this idea ended up being used by a different Pokemon in Generation II. Probably for the best, since the Machop-line's image as the "wrestler Pokemon" has become so memorable.
Machop never got much love in the show, during the Kanto season his biggest appearance was jobbing during the P-1 Grand Prix to Ash's Primeape. It wasn't really till Hoenn where he got his first decent role as one of Brawly's Pokemon, but it's quite odd how Pokemon like Abra and Machop who have been present in so many games end up with very little roles in the show. But then again, I think while folks like Abra and Machop, their designs aren't exactly the cutest or most marketable, and their main appeal is more so their reliability in the games as capable battlers rather than simply Pokemon that are nice to look at.
067 - Machoke
Fighting
Machoke is the evolved form of Machop, and my favorite member of the family, but as I said before, I pretty much feel that way about the middle-forms of all the Link Evolution Pokemon. I feel his design is pretty much perfectly balanced, and as people have mentioned, perhaps because some players may not be able to obtain the Link Evolutions, the middle-forms are designed in a way that visually they have a completeness to them. I could easily accept Machop and Machoke being a two-stage line for example.
Machoke keeps its dinosaur-like attributes somewhat, but also becomes a much more humanoid figure, even now sporting a belt! This is another design element of a Generation ! Pokemon that, based on complaints about other Pokemon, should be a bigger issue, but is incorporated in a rather subtle way that your brain tends to forget about it and thus most folks just accept it as is. The belt isn't simply for show, either, as it's implied to be a "power-limiter" that holds back Machoke's greater strength and it's said if the belt were to be removed, Machoke would end up posing a serious danger to itself and others, unable to control its fiercesome strength. This seems like a cool "storyline" for one of the other mediums to explore, but sadly neither the show nor the manga have ever tackled this idea as far as I know which is a bit of a shame. I wouldn't be surprised, though, if perhaps the belt comes off when the line gets their eventual Mega Evolution...
Early art, especially the sprites, gave Machoke a rather dumb and mean looking appearance, especially its Red and Blue sprite where its apparently flexing and winking at the player. In reality, Machoke is shown to be pretty humble, disciplined, and friendly, and is said to regularly assist humans with various hard labor tasks such as working at construction sites and helping sailors. This was made famous by the Machop stomping the land in Vermilion City (in every trip to Kanto!) and the Machoke movers seen at the beginning of Ruby and Sapphire, and Machoke and Machop have become synonymous with construction work in the Pokemon World---although Generation V introduced a new family of Pokemon who use that as their entire theme. However, because that line has yet to really appear as frequently as Machoke's, he's still the first Pokemon people think of when they visualize Pokemon aiding construction workers.
As I said before, I consider Machoke to have a great sense of balance in his design, losing the awkward "flab" Machop had and looking very tight and intimidating all-around. His design gives off a great impression of physical strength from looks alone, and the veins on his arms are neat visual touch that don't feel intrusive nor tacked-on. While I certainly don't consider Generation I my favorite Generation, I do think that it's fair to say that overall the Pokemon here have the best designs from an objective artistic standpoint in terms of stuff like color, balance, etc., and Machoke is a great representative of this fact. But as I'll explain later on with a certain Pokemon, people have a variety of tastes, and even if a Pokemon is visually sound, that doesn't exactly make it interesting or likable. Machoke is a Pokemon, though, who I think embodies both traits, being artistically nice but also with a sense of likability and whimsicalness to it, and thus has remained a Pokemon I find to be a great representative of why I love this series so much.
Like Machop, Machoke was a Pokemon who didn't get a lot of focus during Kanto, but has gone on to become one of the more popular "background" Pokemon used to flesh out group scenes by giving him to a Trainer in the background, or having him appear at construction sites and training dojos. He's just a very usable Pokemon for those kind of scenes, and I believe he's appeared far more than any other Link Evolution Pokemon. Machoke has also appeared frequently under the command of Gym Leaders, being used by Chuck, Maylene, and recently Korrina. Not too shabby, and well-deserved in my opinion---he's just a good standby for Fighting-type Gym Leaders.
068 - Machamp
Fighting
Machamp is the Link Evolution of Machoke, and could be seen as the counterpart to Alakazam, although he's greatly fallen behind. While Alakazam is still a very powerful and effective Pokemon, Machamp not-so-much, and has recently been replaced, more-or-less, in the competitive scene by other Fighting-types, including a direct counterpart introduced in Generation V. Furthermore, Machamp was skipped over for a Mega Evolution so far in Generation VI, although I consider him one of the top contenders to get a Mega Evolution in the future. Still though, Machamp's popularity is still good, and he remains a solid Pokemon for the in-game adventure. He also recently received a surge of popularity by being one of the first Pokemon to be shown playable in Pokken Tournament alongside the insanely popular Lucario.
While I do like Machamp, I consider him a downgrade compared to Machoke in terms of design. Machoke as I explained is basically perfect, but Machamp adds some new elements that come off as a bit clunky---he almost looks like the typical "Cross Generation Evolution" which will add a bit too much to a balanced pre-existing design. Maybe this was the point though, since as I explained with Alakazam, the Link Evolutions tend to be portrayed as an "unnatural" evolution brought about by human intervention, and perhaps the oddness of Machamp's design was partially intentional. The biggest detractor for me are Machamp's lips. Although I imagine they were intended to be more of a beak-like protrusion possibly tying into the line's dinosaur elements, most portrayals of Machamp draw them as big ol' lips, and I think it would've been better if they kept the regular mouth Machop and Machoke have. The lips and the horn crests kind of give me a Kinnikuman vibe, however, so they're not too bad, but I'm unsure if Game Freak was going for that or if it was a coincidence that Machamp slightly resembles a popular fictional wrestler.
Machamp also adds an additional set of arms, which makes sense---how else are you supposed to make a ripped Pokemon like Machoke look even stronger? Machamp's additional arms allow it to utilize extremely powerful moves simultaneously, but its capabilities are a bit unclear. The PokeDex states that Machamp is a very skilled fighter who is capable of launching various punches and chops at the same time, but at other times it implies that Machamp's not exactly the most coordinated Pokemon, and presumably lacks the ability to manipulate its individual arms to perform more complicated tasks. It seems if Machamp can launch a combination attack consisting of an uppercut, hook, straight, and karate chop, then he has a considerable amount of dexterity and control over his arms individually, but perhaps he's only capable of these graceful movements when it comes to fighting. I suppose Machamp probably isn't skilled at playing the piano, or sewing perhaps.
The arms bring to mind various Hindu deities, but I don't think that was the intention, rather giving him four-arms was just seen as a "cool" way to have Machoke evolve. I actually think the extra arms though are a flaw, as most depictions of Machamp can't get the arms looking right---most sprites look like the extra arms are awkwardly pasted onto the main body (look at the Platinum sprite especially), and have this weird inorganic feel to them. If I stare at Machamp for a few seconds, usually it becomes very noticeable where the extra arms are drawn on, and that really bothers my aesthetic senses. It's also quite noticeable in the show, where its arms often just sit limp in the air, and I figure this is probably because they're probably a pain to animate in an interesting way. They look pretty good in Pokken, however, where they're given a high amount of focus and budget to have them look and work properly.
Even though Machamp seems like he's a pain to draw and animate, he has a fair amount of appearances, often appearing as a background Pokemon in various tournaments and competitions. Despite all this, I don't think he really got a focus episode to himself till just recently where he played a major role in an XY episode, serving as an antagonistic Pokemon at first who was revealed as the episode progressed to be a somewhat "deep" character then first thought. It wasn't even his episode entirely, as the episode was focused mainly on a new Generation VI Pokemon, but he played such a large role that it was the first time I recall liking a Machamp in the show. However this episode also made me realize how awkward his extra arms look most of the time, as they barely seemed to move and stood out considering how XY tends to be a bit more fluid than past seasons.
Sorry to bring this back up but the special Machamp page on the Pokémon Daisuki Club has confirmed that the belt etc. are markings, not clothing which makes things even weirder
http://www.pokemon.jp/special/kairiky_gym/
